Systems and methods for stereo content detection

ABSTRACT

A method for detecting stereo images includes receiving an image and analyzing at least a portion of the image. The method further includes determining whether the image is a stereo image based on the analysis. The method may include determining if a portion of the image contains an expected icon, may determine if left and right halves of the image contain expected symmetry, may determine if histograms of the left and right halves are similar, or the like. The method further includes generating a confidence value related to the determination of whether the image is stereo or non-stereo, the confidence value indicating a likelihood that the determination is correct.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION AND CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/517,851 filed on Jun. 9, 2017. Theabove-identified provisional patent application is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates generally to image processing. Morespecifically, this disclosure relates to detection of stereo content inimages.

BACKGROUND

Various stereo display devices use stereo images to create the illusionof a 3D image. In some stereo display devices, a pair of stereo imagepresented on a 2D display is focused through lenses on the eyes of theoperator such that the operator perceives a 3D image. In such displaydevices, presenting a non-stereo image on the display causes theoperator to perceive a confusing image.

SUMMARY

This disclosure provides systems and methods for stereo contentdetection.

In a first embodiment, a method comprises receiving an image andanalyzing at least a portion of the image. The method further includesdetermining whether the image is a stereo image based on the analysisand generating a confidence value related to the determination, theconfidence value indicating a likelihood that the determination iscorrect

In a second embodiment, a system comprises a display configured todisplay stereo and non-stereo images and a processor configured toreceive an image and analyze at least a portion of the image. Theprocessor is further configured to determine whether the image is astereo image based on the analysis and generate a confidence valuerelated to the determination, the confidence value indicating alikelihood that the determination is correct.

In a third embodiment, a non-transitory computer readable mediumembodies a computer program, and the computer program comprises computerreadable program code that when executed causes at least one processingdevice to receive an image and analyze at least a portion of the image.The computer program further comprises computer readable program codethat when executed causes at least one processing device to determinewhether the image is a stereo image based on the analysis and generate aconfidence value related to the determination, the confidence valueindicating a likelihood that the determination is correct.

Other technical features may be readily apparent to one skilled in theart from the following figures, descriptions, and claims.

Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION below, it may beadvantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases usedthroughout this patent document. The term “couple” and its derivativesrefer to any direct or indirect communication between two or moreelements, whether or not those elements are in physical contact with oneanother. The terms “transmit,” “receive,” and “communicate,” as well asderivatives thereof, encompass both direct and indirect communication.The terms “include” and “comprise,” as well as derivatives thereof, meaninclusion without limitation. The term “or” is inclusive, meaningand/or. The phrase “associated with,” as well as derivatives thereof,means to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, becontained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicablewith, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be boundto or with, have, have a property of, have a relationship to or with, orthe like. The term “controller” means any device, system or part thereofthat controls at least one operation. Such a controller may beimplemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software and/orfirmware. The functionality associated with any particular controllermay be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. Thephrase “at least one of,” when used with a list of items, means thatdifferent combinations of one or more of the listed items may be used,and only one item in the list may be needed. For example, “at least oneof: A, B, and C” includes any of the following combinations: A, B, C, Aand B, A and C, B and C, and A and B and C.

Moreover, various functions described below can be implemented orsupported by one or more computer programs, each of which is formed fromcomputer readable program code and embodied in a computer readablemedium. The terms “application” and “program” refer to one or morecomputer programs, software components, sets of instructions,procedures, functions, objects, classes, instances, related data, or aportion thereof adapted for implementation in a suitable computerreadable program code. The phrase “computer readable program code”includes any type of computer code, including source code, object code,and executable code. The phrase “computer readable medium” includes anytype of medium capable of being accessed by a computer, such as readonly memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), a hard disk drive, acompact disc (CD), a digital video disc (DVD), or any other type ofmemory. A “non-transitory” computer readable medium excludes wired,wireless, optical, or other communication links that transporttransitory electrical or other signals. A non-transitory computerreadable medium includes media where data can be permanently stored andmedia where data can be stored and later overwritten, such as arewritable optical disc or an erasable memory device.

Definitions for other certain words and phrases are provided throughoutthis patent document. Those of ordinary skill in the art shouldunderstand that in many if not most instances, such definitions apply toprior as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of this disclosure and its advantages,reference is now made to the following description, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system according to this disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example electronic device according to thisdisclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates an example HMD system according to this disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of icon detection according to thisdisclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of quick stereo estimation according tothis disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates an example image similarity determination accordingto this disclosure;

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of stereo detection of monoscopic contentaccording to this disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates an example process for icon detection by shaperecognition in accordance with various embodiments of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 9 illustrates an example process for icon detection by symmetry inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 illustrates an example process for quick stereo estimation inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 illustrates an example process for quick stereo estimation inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 illustrates an example process for image similarity detection inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 13 illustrates an example process for monoscopic content detectionin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1 through 13, discussed below, and the various embodiments used todescribe the principles of this disclosure in this patent document areby way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way tolimit the scope of the disclosure. Those skilled in the art willunderstand that the principles of this disclosure may be implemented inany suitably arranged wireless communication system.

Embodiments of this disclosure recognize that operators of an electronichead mounted device, or head mountable device (HMD), may wish to useboth 3D and 2D applications while wearing the HMD. In some embodiments,the HMD includes a detachable electronic device, such as a mobile phone,that provides the 3D and 2D images through an integrated display. Suchdevices may provide 3D images using stereo techniques. Stereo 3D imagesmay be created by displaying a left half image and a right half image onthe display of the mobile device. The HMD contains lenses that focus theleft half image on an operator's left eye and the right half image onthe operator's right eye, causing the illusion of a 3D image.Accordingly, if a non-stereo 2D image is presented on the display andprojected through the stereo lenses of the HMD, the operator may notperceive a useful image as the operator's left eye will see the lefthalf of the non-stereo 2D image and the operator's right eye will seethe right half of the non-stereo 2D image. Embodiments of the disclosureaccordingly present systems and methods for determining, beforedisplaying an image on a display of an HMD, whether the image is astereo or non-stereo image.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system according to an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, an electronic device 101 is included in a networkenvironment 100. The electronic device 101 may include at least one of abus 110, a processor 120, a memory 130, an input/output interface 150, adisplay 160, a communication interface 170, or an event processingmodule 180. In some embodiments, the electronic device 101 may excludeat least one of the components or may add another component.

The bus 110 may include a circuit for connecting the components 120 to180 with one another and transferring communications (e.g., controlmessages and/or data) between the components.

The processor 120 may include one or more of a central processing unit(CPU), an application processor (AP), or a communication processor (CP).The processor 120 may perform control on at least one of the othercomponents of the electronic device 101, and/or perform an operation ordata processing relating to communication.

The memory 130 may include a volatile and/or non-volatile memory. Forexample, the memory 130 may store commands or data related to at leastone other component of the electronic device 101. According to anembodiment of the present disclosure, the memory 130 may store softwareand/or a program 140. The program 140 may include, e.g., a kernel 141,middleware 143, an application programming interface (API) 145, and/oran application program (or “application”) 147. At least a portion of thekernel 141, middleware 143, or API 145 may be denoted an operatingsystem (OS).

For example, the kernel 141 may control or manage system resources(e.g., the bus 110, processor 120, or a memory 130) used to performoperations or functions implemented in other programs (e.g., themiddleware 143, API 145, or application program 147). The kernel 141 mayprovide an interface that allows the middleware 143, the API 145, or theapplication 147 to access the individual components of the electronicdevice 101 to control or manage the system resources.

The middleware 143 may function as a relay to allow the API 145 or theapplication 147 to communicate data with the kernel 141, for example. Aplurality of applications 147 may be provided. The middleware 143 maycontrol work requests received from the applications 147, e.g., byallocation the priority of using the system resources of the electronicdevice 101 (e.g., the bus 110, the processor 120, or the memory 130) toat least one of the plurality of applications 134.

The API 145 is an interface allowing the application 147 to controlfunctions provided from the kernel 141 or the middleware 143. Forexample, the API 133 may include at least one interface or function(e.g., a command) for filing control, window control, image processingor text control.

The input/output interface 150 may serve as an interface that may, e.g.,transfer commands or data input from a user or other external devices toother component(s) of the electronic device 101. Further, theinput/output interface 150 may output commands or data received fromother component(s) of the electronic device 101 to the user or the otherexternal device.

The display 160 may include, e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), alight emitting diode (LED) display, an organic light emitting diode(OLED) display, or a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) display, oran electronic paper display. The display 160 may display, e.g., variouscontents (e.g., text, images, videos, icons, or symbols) to the user.The display 160 may include a touchscreen and may receive, e.g., atouch, gesture, proximity or hovering input using an electronic pen or abody portion of the user.

For example, the communication interface 170 may set up communicationbetween the electronic device 101 and an external electronic device(e.g., a first electronic device 102, a second electronic device 104, ora server 106). For example, the communication interface 170 may beconnected with the network 162 or 164 through wireless or wiredcommunication to communicate with the external electronic device.

The first external electronic device 102 or the second externalelectronic device 104 may be a wearable device or a wearable device inwhich electronic device 101 can be mounted (e.g., a headmounted/mountable display (HMD)). When the electronic device 101 ismounted in a HMD (e.g., the electronic device 102), the electronicdevice 101 may detect the mounting in the HMD and operate in a virtualreality mode. When the electronic device 101 is mounted in theelectronic device 102 (e.g., the HMD), the electronic device 101 maycommunicate with the electronic device 102 through the communicationinterface 170. The electronic device 101 may be directly connected withthe electronic device 102 to communicate with the electronic device 102without involving with a separate network.

The wireless communication may use at least one of, e.g., long termevolution (LTE), long term evolution-advanced (LTE-A), code divisionmultiple access (CDMA), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA),universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), wireless broadband(WiBro), or global system for mobile communication (GSM), as a cellularcommunication protocol. The wired connection may include at least one ofuniversal serial bus (USB), high definition multimedia interface (HDMI),recommended standard 232 (RS-232), or plain old telephone service(POTS).

The network 162 may include at least one of communication networks,e.g., a computer network (e.g., local area network (LAN) or wide areanetwork (WAN)), Internet, or a telephone network.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the server 106 mayinclude a group of one or more servers. According to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, all or some of operations executed on theelectronic device 101 may be executed on another or multiple otherelectronic devices (e.g., the electronic devices 102 and 104 or server106). According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when theelectronic device 101 should perform some function or serviceautomatically or at a request, the electronic device 101, instead ofexecuting the function or service on its own or additionally, mayrequest another device (e.g., electronic devices 102 and 104 or server106) to perform at least some functions associated therewith. The otherelectronic device (e.g., electronic devices 102 and 104 or server 106)may execute the requested functions or additional functions and transfera result of the execution to the electronic device 101. For example, theother electronic device may perform icon detection, quick stereoestimation, image similarity determination, or stereo detection ofmonoscopic content as described in further detail below. The electronicdevice 101 may provide a requested function or service by processing thereceived result as it is or additionally. To that end, a cloudcomputing, distributed computing, or client-server computing techniquemay be used, for example.

Although FIG. 1 shows that the electronic device 101 includes thecommunication interface 170 to communicate with the external electronicdevice 104 or server 106 via the network 162, the electronic device 101may be independently operated without a separate communication function,according to an embodiment of the present invention. That is, allfunctions described below may be performed by the electronic device 101without aid from the other electronic devices 102 and 104 or the server106.

The server 106 may support to drive the electronic device 101 byperforming at least one of operations (or functions) implemented on theelectronic device 101. For example, the server 106 may include an eventprocessing server module (not shown) that may support the eventprocessing module 180 implemented in the electronic device 101. Forexample, the event processing server module may include at least one ofthe components of the event processing module 180 and perform (orinstead perform) at least one of the operations (or functions) conductedby the event processing module 180.

The event processing module 180 may process at least part of informationobtained from other elements (e.g., the processor 120, the memory 130,the input/output interface 150, or the communication interface 170) andmay provide the same to the user in various manners. For example,according to an embodiment of the present invention, the eventprocessing module 180 may process information related to an event, whichis generated while the electronic device 101 is mounted in a wearabledevice (e.g., the electronic device 102) to function as a displayapparatus and to operate in the virtual reality mode, to fit the virtualreality mode and display the processed information. When the eventgenerated while operating in the virtual reality mode is an eventrelated to running an application, the event processing module 180 maydetermine whether the application is a stereo application or anon-stereo application. Additional information on the event processingmodule 180 may be provided through FIG. 2 described below.

Although FIG. 1 illustrates one example of a system including anelectronic device 101 various changes may be made to FIG. 1. Forexample, at least a portion of the event processing module 180 may beincluded or implemented in the processor 120 or at least one othermodule, or the overall function of the event processing module 180 maybe included or implemented in the processor 120 shown or anotherprocessor. The event processing module 180 may perform operationsaccording to embodiments of the present invention in interoperation withat least one program 140 stored in the memory 130.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example electronic device according to anembodiment of the invention. The electronic device 220 may, in comeembodiments, be the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1, which may be adevice capable of rendering stereo images to create a virtual realityexperience. In some embodiments, the electronic device 220 could be anexternal electronic device, such as electronic device 102 or 104 orserver 106. It is understood that the electronic device 220 may be anyappropriate electronic device for displaying stereo images.

Referring to FIG. 2, the electronic device 220 according to anembodiment of the present invention may have at least one display means.In the following description, the electronic device 220 may be a deviceprimarily performing a display function or may denote a normalelectronic device that includes at least one display means and performsadditional functions. For example, the electronic device 220 may be amobile electronic device such as a mobile phone.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the electronicdevice 220 may include at least one of a touchscreen 230, a controller240, a storage unit 250, or a communication unit 260. The touchscreen230 may include a display panel 231 and/or a touch panel 232. Thecontroller 240 may include at least one of a virtual reality modeprocessing unit 241, an event detecting unit 242, an event informationprocessing unit 243, or an application controller 244.

In some embodiments, when the electronic device 220 is mounted in awearable device 210, such as an HMD, the electronic device 220 may run avirtual reality mode. Further, according to an embodiment of the presentinvention, even when the electronic device 220 is not mounted in thewearable device 210, the electronic device 220 may run the virtualreality mode according to the user's settings, or may run a virtualreality mode related application. Although in the following embodimentthe electronic device 220 is set to be mounted in the wearable device210 to run in a virtual reality mode, other embodiments of the presentinvention are not limited thereto.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when theelectronic device 220 operates in the virtual reality mode (e.g., theelectronic device 220 is mounted in the wearable device 210 to operatein a head mounted theater (HMT) mode), the display panel 231 mayfunctionally operate as two screens, each corresponding to one of theoperator's eyes. In this embodiment, the display panel 231 is orientedhorizontally (i.e., with a long edge of the device parallel to theground), and is split into a left half and a right half, each of whichdisplays one portion of a stereo image. The right and left portion ofthe stereo image are designed to be complementary, such that theoperator experiences the illusion of seeing a 3D image when each eyesees only one portion of the stereo image. To this end, the wearabledevice 210 may contain lenses that focus each half of the display 231(and accordingly, each portion of the stereo image) onto one of theoperator's eyes, thereby creating the illusion of a 3D image.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the electronicdevice 220 is operated in the virtual reality mode, the controller 240may perform control to process information related to an event generatedwhile operating in the virtual reality mode to fit the virtual realitymode and display the processed information. According to an embodimentof the present invention, when the event generated while operating inthe virtual reality mode is an event related to running an application,the controller 240 may determine whether the application is a stereo ora non-stereo application.

More specifically, according to an embodiment of the present invention,the controller 240 may include at least one of a virtual reality modeprocessing unit 241, an event detecting unit 242, an event informationprocessing unit 243, or an application controller 244 to performfunctions according to various embodiments of the present invention. Anembodiment of the present invention may be implemented to performvarious operations or functions as described below using at least onecomponent of the electronic device 220 (e.g., the touchscreen 230,controller 240, or storage unit 250).

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the electronicdevice 220 is mounted in the wearable device 210, or the virtual realitymode is run according to the operator's setting, the virtual realitymode processing unit 241 may process various functions related to theoperation of the virtual reality mode. The virtual reality modeprocessing unit 241 may load at least one virtual reality (or stereo)program 251 stored in the storage unit 250 to perform various functions.The virtual reality mode processing unit 241 may additionally oralternatively load at least one non-stereo program 253 stored in thestorage unit 250 to perform various functions.

The event detecting unit 242 may determine an event generated whileoperated in the virtual reality mode by the virtual reality modeprocessing unit 241. For example, the event detecting unit 242 maydetermine when an application such as a virtual reality program 251 or anon-stereo program 253 requests to display an image on the display panel231. Various methods for processing the event may apply. For example,the event detecting unit 242 may determine whether the image is a stereoimage or a non-stereo image via icon detection, quick stereo estimation,

The event information processing unit 243 may process the event-relatedimage to be displayed on the screen to fit the virtual reality modedepending on the result of a determination by the event detecting unit242. Various methods for processing the event-related image may apply.For example, a three-dimensional (3D) image is implemented in thevirtual reality mode, the electronic device 220 may convert theevent-related information to fit the 3D image. For example,event-related information being displayed in two dimensions (2D) may beconverted into information corresponding to the left and right eyecorresponding to the 3D image, and the converted information may besynthesized and displayed on the screen of the virtual reality modebeing currently run.

When it is determined by the event detecting unit 242 that there is anapplication to be run in relation with the event occurring whileoperating in the virtual reality mode, the application controller 244may perform control to block the running of the application related tothe event. According to an embodiment of the present invention, when itis determined by the event detecting unit 242 that there is anapplication to be run in relation with the event occurring whileoperating in the virtual reality mode, the application controller 244may perform control so that the application is run in the background notto influence the running or screen display of the applicationcorresponding to the virtual reality mode when the event-relatedapplication runs.

The storage unit 250 may store at least one virtual reality program 251.The virtual reality program 251 may be an application related to thevirtual reality mode operation of the electronic device 220. The storageunit 250 may also store event-related information 252. The eventdetecting unit 242 may reference the event-related information 252stored in the storage unit 250 to determine whether the occurring eventis displayed on the screen or identify information on the application tobe run in relation with the occurring event. The storage unit 250 mayfurther store at least one non-stereo program 253. The non-stereoprogram 253 may be an application related to a normal (or non-virtualreality) mode operation of the electronic device 220.

The wearable device 210 may be an electronic device including at leastone function of the electronic device 101 shown in FIG. 1, and thewearable device 210 may be a wearable stand to which the electronicdevice 220 may be mounted. In case the wearable device 210 is anelectronic device, when the electronic device 220 is mounted on thewearable device 210, various functions may be provided through thecommunication unit 260 of the electronic device 220. For example, whenthe electronic device 220 is mounted on the wearable device 210, theelectronic device 220 may detect whether to be mounted on the wearabledevice 210 for communication with the wearable device 210 and maydetermine whether to operate in the virtual reality mode (or an HMTmode).

At least some functions of the controller 240 shown in FIG. 2 may beincluded in the event processing module 180 or processor 120 of theelectronic device 101 shown in FIG. 1. The touchscreen 230 or displaypanel 231 shown in FIG. 2 may correspond to the display 160 of FIG. 1.The storage unit 250 shown in FIG. 2 may correspond to the memory 130 ofFIG. 1.

Although FIG. 2 illustrates one example of an electronic device, variouschanges may be made to FIG. 2. For example, the display panel 231 or thetouch panel 232 may also be provided as a separate panel rather thanbeing in a single touchscreen 230. Furthermore, the electronic device220 may include the display panel 231 but exclude the touch panel 232.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example HMD system according to an embodiment ofthe invention. For example, the HMD system 315 of FIG. 3 may be theelectronic device 220 of FIG. 2, the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1, ora combination of those electronic devices with other devices, such asfirst external electronic device 102 of FIG. 1 or wearable device 210 ofFIG. 2. It is understood that the HMD system 315 may be any otherappropriate HMD system for displaying stereo images.

The HMD system 315 may include an electronic device 317 and anelectronic device 319 according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. The electronic device 317 may include a display, such astouchscreen 230, that is capable of displaying both stereo andnon-stereo images. The electronic device 317 may store a virtual realityapplication, such as virtual reality program 251. The virtual realityapplication may be an application which can provide images similar to anactual reality to the user. According to an embodiment, the virtualreality application may display a left eye image and a right eye imagecorresponding to each of the user's eyes based in a stereo scheme. Theelectronic device 317 may also store a non-stereo application, such asnon-stereo program 253. The non-stereo application may display a singleimage across the display of the electronic device 317 (i.e., it does notinclude a left eye image and a right eye image).

The electronic device 319 according to an embodiment may include ahousing 340 provided to be worn on the user's head, a light sealcomponent 330 attached to the housing and provided at an areacorresponding to locations of the user's eyes, and at least one inputbutton 321 provided at one area of the housing 450. The electronicdevice 319 may include an input pad 325 which may receive an input fromthe user such as a swipe, tap, or other input performed by a user. Theelectronic device 319 may be secured on the user's head using a strap350.

The light seal component 330 provides a seal against external light fromentering the space between a user's eyes and the electronic device 317.Thus, the user may position the user's eyes to fit closely to the lightseal component 330 and, accordingly, the user may view the image by thevirtual reality application provided from the electronic device 317without any interference from external, or ambient, light. Varioussuitable configurations of the light seal component 330 may be used toprevent external, or ambient, light from interfering with the user'sability to view the display of the electronic device 317.

The electronic device 317 may be coupled to the electronic device 319,both physically and electrically. The electronic device 317 may bephysically coupled to the electronic device 319 by various mechanismssuch as clamps, clips, magnets, straps, reusable adhesives, elastics, acover that seals around the electronic device 317, or any other suitablephysical coupling mechanism. The electronic device 317 may beelectrically connected to the electronic device 319 through a wire orwirelessly. It is understood that there is no limitation on theconnection if data transmission/reception between the two devices 317and 319 is possible through the connection. According to anotherembodiment, the electronic device 317 may be directly coupled to theelectronic device 319 without the use of a wire or wireless connection.For example, the electronic devices 317 and 319 may couple directly viaa compatible port.

Although FIG. 3 illustrates one example of an HMD system, variouschanges may be made to FIG. 3. For example, the electronic device 319may include all functions of the electronic device 317 integrally, withno further electronic devices needed to provide the functions ofembodiments of this disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of icon detection according to a method ofthis disclosure. Icon detection methods may be used with any of thesystems described above. Icon detection may be initiated after detectionof an event detected by the event detecting unit 242. For example, upondetection of an event that corresponds to a request to display an imageon the display panel 231, icon detection may be performed to determinewhether the image is a stereo or a non-stereo image.

The method may utilize image processing or computer vision techniques todetermine the presence of a known icon 410 within an image 400 that mayindicate that the image is as a stereo content image. For example, itmay be known that applications designed for the virtual realityenvironment of the HMD are designed with an icon (such as icon 410) in aknown, standard location for accessing a settings menu. In the exampleshown, the settings icon 410 is at the lower center of the image 400.Common characteristics for the known icon may be utilized to determineits presence (e.g., symmetry, other shapes making up the icon, etc.).

In an example of icon detection by detecting symmetry of the icon abouta center line 420, a sub-image 430 containing the icon may be obtained,then the image may be divided in half (i.e., divided into a rightportion and a left portion). One half may be flipped and subtracted fromthe other half to find a percentage difference between the right portionand the left portion. If the difference is below a predeterminedthreshold (e.g., less than 10% difference), that indicates that the twohalves are roughly the same, and the image may be determined to besymmetrical, and therefore a determination of successful icon detectionmay be made. It is understood that other appropriate threshold valuesmay be used. For example, a threshold value may be predeterminedempirically.

In some embodiments, instead of a set threshold a confidence value maybe determined and related with the determination of symmetry. Forexample, if the percent difference is determined to be 1%, theconfidence value related with a resulting determination of symmetry maybe very high. If the percent difference is determined to be 10%, theconfidence value related with a resulting determination of symmetry maybe acceptable. If the percent difference is determined to be 20%, theconfidence value related with a resulting determination of symmetry maybe low. It is understood that this is an example, and any confidencevalues may be used.

In an example of icon detection by detecting shapes (e.g., the circlewithin the cog of icon 410), a shape detector in an image recognitionmethod may be utilized to find the number of enclosed shapes within agiven dimension information. The dimension information may be determinedfrom the known information about the expected size, shape, and locationof the icon 410. A predetermined list of expected shapes may be comparedto any detected shapes. For example, a Hough circle transform may beused to detect circles within the icon 410. If the expected shape (inthis case, a single circle), is found within the icon 410, adetermination of successful icon detection may be made.

Although FIG. 4 illustrates one example of icon detection, variouschanges may be made to FIG. 4. For example, the icon need not be in thecenter of a stereo image.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of quick stereo estimation according tothis disclosure. Quick stereo estimation (QSE) methods may be used withany of the systems described above. Quick stereo estimation may beinitiated after detection of an event detected by the event detectingunit 242. For example, upon detection of an event that corresponds to arequest to display an image on the display panel 231, quick stereoestimation may be performed to determine whether the image is a stereoor a non-stereo image.

The method may divide the overall image 500 into a left half (orportion) 510 and a right half (or portion) 520. In some embodiments, theleft half 510 and the right half 520 are converted from red, green, andblue (RGB) color space to hue, saturation, and value (HSV) color space,and may be downsampled to a predefined resolution that is lower than anoriginal resolution of the image. Each half 510 and 520 may be reshapedinto a one-dimensional vector, and a correlation coefficient may becalculated for the one-dimensional vector representations of each half510 and 520. If the correlation coefficient is below a predeterminedthreshold, it indicates a lack of similarity between the left half 510and the right half 520, which in turn indicates that the image is anon-stereo image. If the correlation coefficient is above thepredetermined threshold, it is implied that the image is a stereo image.

In some embodiments, a further comparison between the originalresolution versions of the left half 510 and the right half 520 may beperformed to confirm that the image is a stereo image. A grid 530 isoverlaid on one half (for example the left half 510) of the overallimage 500. Sample patches, such as sample patch 540, may be located onthe intersections of the grid. In some embodiments, a sample patch 540is comprised of a set number of pixels of the image. For example, samplepatch 540 may comprise R rows and K columns of pixels. In someembodiments, the grid size may have a number of rows G_(r) a number ofcolumns G_(c). The values of R, K, G_(r), and G_(c) may be determined soas to balance efficiency of calculation with accuracy of results. Insome embodiments, sample patches may be removed from consideration ifthey are not considered informative. For example, if a number of edgesdetected in the sample patch is below a predetermined threshold, thesample patch may be considered not to be informative.

Corresponding patches may be searched for on the right half 520 of theimage. For example, a corresponding set of pixels in a candidate patch550 in the right half 520 may be compared to the pixels of sample patch540. The candidate patch 550 may be in a neighborhood 560 within theright half 520, and may not be at exactly the same position as thesample patch 540. The neighborhood 560 may have a predetermined size inpixels, and may be centered on the area in the right half 520 thatcorresponds to the sample patch 540. The neighborhood 560 is searcheddue to the nature of stereo images, wherein the left half 510 and righthalf 520 of the image 500 will be similar, but not identical. Inparticular, each half will contain most of the same information, but inslightly different positions.

In some embodiments, the pixel values of candidate patches 550 with asame pixel area as the pixel area of patch 540 are compared to the pixelvalues of sample patch 540, and if the similarity between the patchessurpasses a predetermined threshold, candidate patch 550 is determinedto correspond to sample patch 540. Found corresponding patches mayincrease a score for determining whether the image is a stereo image.Once a corresponding patch is found, a new sample patch 540 may beselected and a search for candidate patches 550 may be performed in anew neighborhood 560. Further details for the process are describedbelow.

In some embodiments, instead of a set threshold a confidence value maybe determined and related with the determination of correspondingpatches. For example, if the percent difference between the pixel valuesof a sample patch 540 and a target patch 550 is determined to be 1%, theconfidence value related with a resulting determination that the patchescorrespond to each other may be very high. If the percent difference isdetermined to be 10%, the confidence value related with a resultingdetermination that the patches correspond to each other may beacceptable. If the percent difference is determined to be 20%, theconfidence value related with a resulting determination that the patchescorrespond to each other may be low. It is understood that this is anexample, and any confidence values may be used.

In some embodiments, a preliminary search of squares of the grid 530 maybe made to determine whether any of the grid squares do not contain muchvariation (i.e., to determine whether the grid square is mostly a solidcolor). Such squares may not provide much useful information forcomparison of one half to the other, and they may be excluded from thesearch for corresponding patches. In some embodiments, thisdetermination is made by a number of edges (or transitions) betweencolors in the square.

Although FIG. 5 illustrates one example of a quick stereo estimationtechnique, various changes may be made to FIG. 5. For example, in someembodiments the number of pixels in a first half of the image for whichcorresponding candidate pixels are searched for in the other half of theimage may be reduced to a single column of pixels.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of image similarity determinationaccording to an embodiment of the invention. Image similaritydetermination methods may be used with any of the systems describedabove. Image similarity determination may be initiated after detectionof an event detected by the event detecting unit 242. For example, upondetection of an event that corresponds to a request to display an imageon the display panel 231, image similarity determination may beperformed to determine whether the image is a stereo or a non-stereoimage.

This embodiment utilizes an image histogram, which is a computation ofthe distribution of pixel values (such as the RGB values of the pixels)in an image. After dividing the full display image 600 into a left half(or portion) 610 and a right half (or portion) 620, the histogram ofeach half is computed. As illustrated, the left half histogram 630 isoverlaid on the left half 610 of the image, and the right half histogram640 is overlaid on the right half 620 of the image. It is understoodthat this overlay is for illustrative purposes, and the histograms 630and 640 are analyzed separately from the underlying left half 610 andright half 620 of the image. As noted above, the left half 610 and righthalf 620 of a stereo image will be similar, but not 100% similar, due tothe nature of stereo image displays. Accordingly, the histograms 630 and640 are compared, and if the percent similarity surpasses apredetermined threshold, a preliminary determination is reached that theimage 600 is a stereo image.

In some embodiments, histograms 630 and 640 may be similar but thecontent of left half 610 and right half 620 do not form a stereo image.Specifically, this is the case when the image 600 is a non-stereo imagethat happens to have reflection symmetry about the center line 650(i.e., when the left half 610 and right half 620 are mirror images ofeach other). In this case, the histograms 630 and 640 will be verysimilar as the RGB content of each half will be nearly identical, eventhough the left half image 610 and right half image 620 are actuallymirror images of each other rather than nearly identical copies. That isto say, the RGB content of an image remains the same even when it isflipped, so histograms cannot detect such flipping. In order to checkfor this case, symmetry detection may be used. For example, one half 610or 620 may be flipped and subtracted from the other half 620 or 610, andthe resulting percentage difference between the right portion and theleft halves can be compared to a predetermined threshold. If thedifference is below a predetermined threshold (e.g., less than 10%difference), that indicates that the two halves are roughly the same,and the image may be determined to be a symmetrical non-stereo image. Insome embodiments, a confidence value may be determined and related withthe determination of image similarity, in a similar manner as describedabove with respect the FIGS. 4 and 5.

Although FIG. 6 illustrates one example of image similaritydetermination, various changes may be made to FIG. 6. For example, othermethods such as quick stereo estimation may be used to check forsymmetry between the left and right halves of the image in order toavoid a situation where the left half image 610 and the right half image620 do not form a stereo image.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of stereo detection of monoscopic contentaccording to an embodiment of the invention. Methods of stereo detectionof monoscopic content may be used with any of the systems describedabove. Stereo detection of monoscopic content may be initiated afterdetection of an event detected by the event detecting unit 242. Forexample, upon detection of an event that corresponds to a request todisplay an image on the display panel 231, stereo detection ofmonoscopic content may be performed to determine whether the image is astereo or a non-stereo image.

There are generally two ways of creating virtual reality content:monoscopic and stereoscopic generation. Monoscopic generation usesimages for the left and right eye that are generated from the samevantage point (i.e., from one camera) and the depth experienced in astereo image created from monoscopic generation is actually constanteverywhere in the image. As a result, an object will be in the sameposition on each half of a monoscopically generated stereo image.Stereoscopic generation uses images for the left and right eyes that aregenerated from different vantage points (i.e., using two cameras), andthe depth experienced in a stereo image created from stereoscopicgeneration is similar to the depth experienced by humans in the realworld. That is to say, the depth of an object is different depending onan object's distance from the camera. As a result, objects are inslightly different positions relative to each other in each half of astereoscopically generated stereo image. It may be useful to determinewhether a stereo image was generated from monoscopic or stereoscopiccontent to allow for better processing of the image for display in anHMD or other appropriate stereo display.

Monoscopic content is typically generated from a single image and apredefined depth, and therefore a given region of the left eye imagewould correspond to the same region (i.e., the same location) in theright eye image. Monoscopic content, such as image 700, may therefore bedetected by first selecting at least two regions 730 and 740 of the lefthalf image 710 that are at different depths, finding correspondingregions 750 and 760 of the right half image 720, and determining if theregions 730 and 740 are the same distance from their correspondingregions 750 and 760 (i.e., determining whether the distances 770 and 780are the same). It is understood that the corresponding regions may belocated, for example, using quick stereo estimation, edge detection, orany other suitable technique.

In an embodiment, an object (such as the woman's face) in each ofregions 730 and 750 is identified, and used to determine the distance770 between the objects shown on a display. Similarly, an object (suchas the man's face) in each of regions 740 and 760 is identified todetermine the distance 780 between these objects shown on a display. Ifthe distances 770 and 780 are the same or nearly the same, then it maybe determined that the image 700 was created with monoscopic generation.

Although FIG. 7 illustrates one example of stereo detection ofmonoscopic content, various changes may be made to FIG. 7. For example,it should be noted that although the above illustrations are shown intwo dimensions, the zones are often three dimensional. It also should benoted that for clarity and ease of illustration, the figures are notnecessarily made to scale.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example process for icon detection by shaperecognition in accordance with various embodiments of the presentdisclosure. In some embodiments, the process of FIG. 8 may be performedby the electronic device 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system315, or any other suitable system capable of displaying stereo ornon-stereo images. For simplicity, the process will be described asperformed by an electronic device.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step805. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example by receivingthe image from an external source, by extracting a frame from videocontent, or the like. The process is directed at determining whether theimage is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronic device then, atstep 810, selects a portion of the image to analyze. In someembodiments, the selected portion may be a predetermined portion. Forexample, a standard may dictate that a specific icon (such as a settingsmenu icon) be displayed in a same position across all virtual realityapplications developed for the electronic device. In other embodiments,there may be multiple portions of the image that contain identifiableicons. In such a case, the electronic device may feasibly determinewhether the image is a stereo image (for use in a virtual realityenvironment) based on whether or not the expected icon is present.

The electronic device then determines whether the predetermined portionof the image includes at least one shape at step 815. For example, theicon may be a gear-shaped icon. In further embodiments, the gear-shapedicon may include a circular shape in the center representing a hole inthe gear. The electronic device may determine whether the image includesthe gear shape by, for example, edge detection, recognizing acharacteristic edge pattern of the gear-shaped icon. In someembodiments, the electronic device may determine whether a circle existswithin the gear-shaped icon, for example by using a Hough circletransform.

Thereafter, the electronic device may determine whether the detectedshape is a predetermined (i.e., expected) shape at step 820. Forexample, the electronic device may contain a table or list of possibleshapes of icons displayed in the predetermined portion of the image. Ifa shape is found in step 815, and the shape matches a shape in the tableor list of electronic device, the electronic device may determine thatthe detected shape is the predetermined shape. In some embodiments, thisleads to a determination that the image is a stereo image at step 825.Similarly, if no shape is detected, or if a shape is detected but doesnot match the table or list of the electronic device, this leads to adetermination that the image is a non-stereo image.

The electronic device may next generate a confidence value for thedetermination of whether the image is a stereo or non-stereo image atstep 830. For example, a Hough circular transform may produce aconfidence interval or confidence value when reporting that a circle hasbeen detected. This value may either directly be used or may be used togenerate a different confidence value for the determination.

The electronic device may then, at step 835, determine whether theconfidence value is acceptable. For example, the electronic device maydetermine whether the confidence value exceeds a predetermined thresholdat which it is confident that the image either is or is not a stereoimage. If the confidence value is not acceptable, the process may returnto step 810 and select a new portion of the image to analyze. If theconfidence value is acceptable, the process may end.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example process for icon detection by symmetry inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the process of FIG. 9 may be performed by the electronicdevice 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system 315, or any othersuitable system capable of displaying stereo or non-stereo images. Forsimplicity, the process will be described as performed by an electronicdevice.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step905. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example by receivingthe image from an external source, by extracting a frame from videocontent, or the like. The process is directed at determining whether theimage is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronic device thenselects a portion of the image to analyze at step 907. In someembodiments, the selected portion may be a predetermined portion. Forexample, a standard may dictate that a specific icon (such as a settingsmenu icon) be displayed in a same position across all virtual realityapplications developed for the electronic device. In other embodiments,there may be multiple portions of the image that contain identifiableicons. In such a case, the electronic device may feasibly determinewhether the image is a stereo image (for use in a virtual realityenvironment) based on whether or not the expected icon is present. Afterselecting the area, at step 910, the electronic device may isolate anicon within the area, and divide the icon in half about a verticalcenter line.

Next, at step 915, the electronic device determines whether each half ofthe icon is symmetrical about the center line. For example, theelectronic device may flip one half of the icon (i.e., so that if thetwo halves were mirror images they are now identical), and subtract theflipped half from the other half (e.g., subtract the pixel values of theflipped half from the other half).

Thereafter, at step 920, the electronic device compares the result ofthe subtraction to an expected result that should occur in the case ofsymmetry. Specifically, if the two half icons were mirror images, theresult of the subtraction should be very small, or zero. As discussedabove, if the icon is found to be symmetrical, this may indicate thatthe image is a stereo image.

Once the determination of stereo or non-stereo image is made, theelectronic device may generate a confidence value for the result at step925. For example, if the expected value of subtraction in the case ofmirror symmetry is zero, then a non-zero result may indicate anon-stereo image, or it could simply indicate that the image was notquite centered. Accordingly, if the result of the subtraction isnon-zero, but is small (below a predetermined threshold that accountsfor various errors), a confidence value may be high, while if the valueof the subtraction is large, the confidence value may be low.

The electronic device may then, at step 930, determine whether theconfidence value is acceptable. For example, the electronic device maydetermine whether the confidence value exceeds a predetermined thresholdat which it is confident that the image either is or is not a stereoimage. If the confidence value is not acceptable, the process may returnto step 907 and select a new portion of the image to analyze. If theconfidence value is acceptable, the process may end.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example process for quick stereo estimation inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the process of FIG. 10 may be performed by the electronicdevice 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system 315, or any othersuitable system capable of displaying stereo or non-stereo images. Forsimplicity, the process will be described as performed by an electronicdevice.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step1005. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example byreceiving the image from an external source, by extracting a frame fromvideo content, or the like. The process is directed at determiningwhether the image is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronicdevice then, at step 1010, divides the image into a first half and asecond half about a center line. After dividing the image in half, theelectronic device at step 1015 proceeds to reshape each half into aone-dimensional vector that represents the respective half of the image.In some embodiments, before reshaping, the electronic device convertsthe image from an RGB colorspace to an HSV colorspace and scales theimage down to a lower resolution.

Thereafter, the electronic device computes a correlation coefficient forthe two one-dimensional vectors at step 1020. The electronic device, atstep 1025, uses the result of the correlation coefficient calculation todetermine whether the image is stereo or non-stereo. For example, if thecorrelation coefficient is very high (e.g., close to 1), this indicatesthat the two halves of the image contain very similar information, whichin turn indicates that the image is a stereo image. Similarly, if thecorrelation coefficient is small, this indicates that the two halves ofthe image do not contain very similar information, which in turnindicates that the image is a non-stereo image. In some embodiments, theelectronic device may use a predetermined threshold for the correlationcoefficient to make the determination of whether the image is stereo ornon-stereo.

Once the determination of stereo or non-stereo image is made, theelectronic device may generate a confidence value for the result at step1030. For example, if the correlation coefficient has passed thethreshold but is close to the threshold, a confidence value may beacceptable but not high. If the correlation coefficient is near 1, theconfidence value may be high. In some embodiments where the correlationcoefficient is only acceptable, the electronic device may performfurther testing to verify whether the image is stereo or non-stereo,such as that described in FIG. 11.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example process for quick stereo estimation inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the process of FIG. 11 may be performed by the electronicdevice 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system 315, or any othersuitable system capable of displaying stereo or non-stereo images. Forsimplicity, the process will be described as performed by an electronicdevice.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step1105. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example byreceiving the image from an external source, by extracting a frame fromvideo content, or the like. The process is directed at determiningwhether the image is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronicdevice then, at step 1110, divides the image into a first half and asecond half about a center line. In some embodiments, when the processof FIG. 11 is being performed after the process of FIG. 10 has beenperformed, steps 1105 and 1110 may already have occurred and theinformation from steps 1005 and 1010 of FIG. 10 may be used.

After dividing the image in half, the electronic device at step 1115proceeds to overlay a grid onto at least a first half of the image thatdivides the first half of the image into a plurality of portions. Atstep 1120, the electronic device selects a portion of the first half toserve as a sample portion. At step 1123, the electronic devicedetermines whether the selected sample portion is informative. Forexample, if a number of edges detected in the sample portion is below apredetermined threshold, the sample portion may be considered not to beinformative. If the sample portion is determined not to be informative,the process returns to step 1120 and selects a new sample portion.

The electronic device then, at step 1125, searches for a candidateportion in the second half of the image that matches the sample portionin the first half of the image. In some embodiments, the electronicdevice searches an area (or neighborhood) around a location in thesecond half of the image that corresponds to the location of the sampleportion in the first half of the image. The electronic device maydetermine that a candidate portion matches a sample portion by, forexample, subtracting one from the other or comparing histograms of eachportion for similarity.

At step 1130, the electronic device determines whether the image is astereo or non-stereo image based on whether a candidate portion matchingthe sample portion was found. If a matching candidate portion is found,that indicates that the two halves of the image are similar, and theimage is a stereo image. In some embodiments, more than one sampleportion may be chosen and should be matched with a correspondingcandidate portion in order to determine that the image is a stereoimage. In other embodiments, the sample portion and candidate portionare not restricted to a grid, and may be, for example, a column or rowof pixels of the image.

Once the determination of stereo or non-stereo image is made, theelectronic device may generate a confidence value for the result at step1135. For example, if the candidate portion is only somewhat similar tothe sample portion, a confidence value may be acceptable but not high.If the candidate portion is almost entirely similar to the sampleportion, the confidence value may be high.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example process for image similarity detection inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the process of FIG. 12 may be performed by the electronicdevice 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system 315, or any othersuitable system capable of displaying stereo or non-stereo images. Forsimplicity, the process will be described as performed by an electronicdevice.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step1205. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example byreceiving the image from an external source, by extracting a frame fromvideo content, or the like. The process is directed at determiningwhether the image is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronicdevice then, at step 1210, divides the image into a first half and asecond half about a center line. Thereafter, the electronic devicedetermines histograms for each of the first and second halves of theimage at step 1215. Once the histograms are determined, the electronicdevice compares the histograms at step 1220 to determine how similarthey are.

At step 1225, the electronic device determines whether the image is astereo or non-stereo image based on the similarity of the histograms ofthe first and second halves of the image. In some embodiments, thepercentage similarity of the histograms is compared to a predeterminedthreshold. If the percentage similarity surpasses the threshold, itindicates that the two halves of the image are very similar, which inturn is a preliminary indication that the image is a stereo image. Inthis case, the process moves to step 1230 to confirm that the image is astereo image and not a non-stereo image with reflective symmetry. If thepercentage similarity falls short of the threshold, it indicates thatthe two halves of the image are not similar, which indicates that theimage is a non-stereo image, and the process proceeds to step 1235,described further below.

In the case that the percentage similarity surpasses the threshold, theelectronic device may, at step 1230, further determine whether the imageis actually a non-stereo image that happens to have reflective symmetryabout the center line that divides the two halves. In such a case,symmetry may be determined by flipping one of the halves and subtractingit from the other half (e.g., subtracting the pixel values from eachother). A zero or near-zero result indicates that the two halves aremirror images of each other, and not a stereo image.

Once the determination of stereo or non-stereo image is made, theelectronic device may generate a confidence value for the result at step1235. For example, if the histograms are only somewhat similar to eachother, a confidence value may be acceptable but not high. If thehistograms are almost entirely similar to each other, the confidencevalue may be high.

FIG. 13 illustrates an example process for monoscopic content detectionin accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. Insome embodiments, the process of FIG. 13 may be performed by theelectronic device 101, the electronic device 220, the HMD system 315, orany other suitable system capable of displaying stereo or non-stereoimages. For simplicity, the process will be described as performed by anelectronic device.

The process begins with the electronic device obtaining an image at step1305. The image may be obtained in various ways, for example byreceiving the image from an external source, by extracting a frame fromvideo content, or the like. The process is directed at determiningwhether the image is a stereo or a non-stereo image. The electronicdevice then divides the image into a first half and a second half abouta center line (step 1310).

Thereafter, at step 1315, the electronic device chooses two portions ofa first half of the image, preferably containing identifiable objects,and locates corresponding objects in the second half of the image. Forexample, computer vision, edge detection, or other optical recognitiontechniques may be used to detect the objects.

The electronic device then determines at step 1320 a first distancebetween each portion (or object) in the first pair of portions (orobjects), and determines a second distance between each portion (orobject) in the second pair of portions (or objects). The electronicdevice may then determine that if the first and second distances aresubstantially similar, the image is a monoscopic stereo image.Similarly, if the distances between the objects in each pair of objectsare different, it may be determined that the image is a stereoscopicstereo image.

Once the determination of stereo or non-stereo image is made, theelectronic device may generate a confidence value for the result at step1325. For example, if the distances are only somewhat similar to eachother, a confidence value may be acceptable but not high. If thedistances are almost entirely similar to each other, the confidencevalue may be high.

None of the description in this application should be read as implyingthat any particular element, step, or function is an essential elementthat must be included in the claim scope. The scope of patented subjectmatter is defined only by the claims. Moreover, none of the claims isintended to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) unless the exact words “means for”are followed by a participle.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: obtaining an image that isrendered for display on a display of an electronic device; analyzing atleast a portion of the image; determining whether the image is a stereoimage or a non-stereo image based on the analysis; and generating aconfidence value related to the determination, the confidence valueindicating a likelihood that the determination of whether the image is astereo image or a non-stereo image is correct.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein: analyzing the at least a portion of the image includes:isolating an icon in the at least a portion of the image, anddetermining whether the icon includes at least one shape, anddetermining whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereo imageincludes determining whether the at least one shape is a predeterminedshape.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein: analyzing at least a portionof the image includes: isolating an icon in the at least a portion ofthe image dividing the icon into a first half and a second half about acenter line, and comparing the first half to the second half;determining whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereo imageincludes determining whether the first half and the second half of theicon are symmetrical to each other about the center line; and generatingthe confidence value includes: comparing symmetry of the first half andthe second half of the icon to an expected value of symmetry; anddetermining the confidence value based on a result of the comparison. 4.The method of claim 1, wherein: analyzing at least a portion of theimage includes: separating the at least a portion of the image into afirst half and a second half; calculating a correlation coefficient forinformation in the first half of the at least a portion of the image andinformation in the second half of the at least a portion of the image,and determining whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereoimage includes comparing the correlation coefficient to a predeterminedthreshold.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein: analyzing at least aportion of the image includes: separating the at least a portion of theimage into a first half and a second half; dividing the first half intoa number of first segments; selecting a segment of the first half fromthe first segments as a sample segment; and searching for a candidatesegment within an area around a location within the second half thatcorresponds to a location of the sample segment within the first half,wherein the candidate segment is substantially similar to the samplesegment; and wherein determining whether the image is a stereo image ora non-stereo image includes determining a similarity between the samplesegment of the first half and the candidate segment of the second half.6. The method of claim 1, wherein: analyzing at least a portion of theimage includes: separating the at least a portion of the image into afirst half and a second half; generating a first histogram of pixelvalues for the first half and a second histogram of pixel values for thesecond half; determining whether the image is a stereo image or anon-stereo image includes determining an amount of similarity betweenthe first histogram to the second histogram; and generating theconfidence value includes generating the confidence value based on theamount of similarity between the first histogram to the secondhistogram.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: determiningwhether the first half is a mirror image of the second half based on theamount of similarity meeting or exceeding a predefined threshold;wherein determining whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereoimage includes determining, when the first half is a mirror image of thesecond half, the image is not a stereo image.
 8. The method of claim 1,wherein analyzing at least a portion of the image further comprises:separating the at least a portion of the image into a first half and asecond half; comparing the first half to the second half, the comparingincluding locating at least two objects in the first half and at leasttwo corresponding objects in the second half; identifying pairs ofcorresponding objects between the at least two objects in the first halfand the at least two objects in the second half; determining, for eachpair of corresponding objects, a distance between each object comprisingthe pair; and determining, when distances for each pair of correspondingobjects are substantially equal, that the image is a monoscopic image.9. A system comprising: a display configured to display stereo andnon-stereo images; a processor configured to: obtain an image that isrendered for display on the display; analyze at least a portion of theimage; determine whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereoimage based on the analysis; and generate a confidence value related tothe determination of whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereoimage, the confidence value indicating a likelihood that thedetermination is correct.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein theprocessor is further configured to: analyze the at least a portion ofthe image by isolating an icon in the at least a portion of the imageand determining whether the icon includes at least one shape; anddetermine whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereo image bydetermining whether the at least one shape is a predetermined shape. 11.The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to:analyze at least a portion of the image by: separating the at least aportion of the image into a first half and a second half; andcalculating a correlation coefficient for information the first half ofthe at least a portion of the image and information in the second halfof the at least a portion of the image; and determine whether the imageis a stereo image or a non-stereo image by comparing the correlationcoefficient to a predetermined threshold.
 12. The system of claim 9,wherein the processor is configured to: analyze at least a portion ofthe image by: separating the at least a portion of the image into afirst half and a second half; dividing the first half into a number offirst segments; selecting a segment of the first half from the firstsegments as a sample segment; and searching for a candidate segmentwithin an area around a location within the second half that correspondsto a location of the sample segment within the first half, wherein thecandidate segment is substantially similar to the sample segment; anddetermine whether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereo image bydetermining a similarity between the sample segment of the first halfand the candidate segment of the second half.
 13. The system of claim 9,wherein the processor is configured to: analyze at least a portion ofthe image by: separating the at least a portion of the image into afirst half and a second half; generating a first histogram of pixelvalues for the first half and a second histogram of pixel values for thesecond half; determine whether the image is a stereo image or anon-stereo image by determining an amount of similarity between thefirst histogram to the second histogram; and generate the confidencevalue by generating the confidence value based on the amount ofsimilarity between the first histogram to the second histogram.
 14. Thesystem of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to:separate the at least a portion of the image into a first half and asecond half; compare the first half to the second half, the processorconfigured to compare the first half to the second half by locating atleast two objects in the first half and at least two correspondingobjects in the second half; identify pairs of corresponding objectsbetween the at least two objects in the first half and the at least twoobjects in the second half; determine, for each pair of correspondingobjects, a distance between each object comprising the pair; anddetermine, when distances for each pair of corresponding objects aresubstantially equal, that the image is monoscopic image.
 15. Anon-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructionsexecutable by at least one processor to: obtain an image that isrendered for display on a display of an electronic device; analyze atleast a portion of the image; determine whether the image is a stereoimage or a non-stereo image based on the analysis; and generate aconfidence value related to the determination of whether the image is astereo image or a non-stereo image, the confidence value indicating alikelihood that the determination is correct.
 16. The non-transitorycomputer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the computer readablemedium further comprises instructions that, when executed, cause the atleast one processor to: analyze the at least a portion of the image byisolating an icon in the at least a portion of the image, anddetermining whether the icon includes at least one shape; and determinewhether the image is a stereo image or a non-stereo image includesdetermining whether the at least one shape is a predetermined shape. 17.The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, furthercomprising instructions that, when executed, further cause the at leastone processor to: analyze at least a portion of the image by: separatingthe at least a portion of the image into a first half and a second half;calculating a correlation coefficient for information in the first halfof the at least a portion of the image and information in the secondhalf of the at least a portion of the image; and determine whether theimage is a stereo image or a non-stereo image by comparing thecorrelation coefficient to a predetermined threshold.
 18. Thenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, further comprisinginstructions that, when executed, cause the at least one processor to:analyze at least a portion of the image by: separating the at least aportion of the image into a first half and a second half; dividing Thefirst half into a number of first segments; selecting a segment of thefirst half from the first segments as a sample segment; and searchingfor a candidate segment within an area around a location within thesecond half that corresponds to a location of the sample segment withinthe first half, wherein the candidate segment is substantially similarto a sample portion; and determine whether the image is a stereo imageor a non-stereo image by determining a similarity between the samplesegment of the first half and the candidate segment of the second half.19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, furthercomprising instructions that, when executed, cause the at least oneprocessor to: analyze at least a portion of the image by: separating theat least a portion of the image into a first half and a second half; andgenerating a first histogram of pixel values for the first half and asecond histogram of pixel values for the second half; determine whetherthe image is a stereo image or a non-stereo image by determining anamount of similarity between the first histogram to the secondhistogram; and generate the confidence value by generating theconfidence value based on the amount of similarity between the firsthistogram to the second histogram.
 20. The non-transitory computerreadable medium of claim 15, further comprising instructions that, whenexecuted, cause the at least one processor to: separate the at least aportion of the image into a first half and a second half; compare thefirst half to the second half, wherein the instructions that, whenexecuted, cause the at least one processor to compare the first half tothe second half include instructions that, when executed, cause the atleast one processor to locate at least two objects in the first half andat least two corresponding objects in the second half; identify pairs ofcorresponding objects between the at least two objects in the first halfand the at least two objects in the second half; determine, for eachpair of corresponding objects, a distance between each object comprisingthe pair; and determine, when distances for each pair of correspondingobjects are substantially equal, that the image is a monoscopic image.